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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. wind — moving air
  3. can — a tin
  4. file — a line of people
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. wind — moving air
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. spell — a short time
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. can — a tin
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. pound — a weight
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. plane — a tool
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. spell — letters
  20. bulb — for light
  21. mine — for digging
  22. file — a tool
  23. can — to be able to
  24. file — a document

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com